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Graceland Dairies
Mr. Gary Burley, owner of the Graceland Dairies, built a new 3,600 square foot milking parlor on his farm in Dansville, Livingston County.
With technical and financial assistance from the State, Mr. Burley was able to install efficient state-of-the-art technology in his new building, including energy-efficient lighting, a milk plate pre-cooler, ice bank cooling, floor slab radiant heating, and variable speed drive vacuum pumps. A milk plate pre-cooler uses ground water, usually at 50-55° F, to initially cool milk for storage, which reduces the amount of time needed for electrical refrigeration. Ice bank cooling takes advantage of a utility company’s off-peak reduced electricity rates by producing ice during evening hours and storing it for later use during peak hours. During the refrigeration process, heat rejected by the compressors is transferred to water or another medium to heat the milking parlor’s floor through radiant tubing.
Future modifications to the milking parlor may include the installation of a manure digesting system that would produce methane to be used as a fuel for on-site electricity generation.